2:17 am
by TheCocoAdel
Summary: Coco Adel, leader of team CFVY, has spent many weeks waking up at 2:17 am from a bad dream.
1. 2:17 am

_Crunch, crack, scream._

 _The girl was running, splitting the night's harsh wind with her body. Running through the dark woods, blood on her hands. The Bunny had died together with the fox and the giant. Blood was everywhere, bodies ripped apart. The girl had made the mistake. It who she who had gotten them killed, it was on her hands, it was on her face. She had let her team down, she seen them die right in front of her, and she couldn't do a thing to stop it._

 _Crunch, crack, roar._

 _She knew The Beast was chasing her. It had let her run. She could just tell that it wanted the chase. Whether it was for food or for joy that it had killed her team, hunting her down, she just didn't know. All the girl knew was the sounds of her running and the fear through her veins._

 _Crunch, crack, SMACK._

 _She tripped, she was helpless, she was stuck on the floor, trying to crawl away. The Beast pounced, the roar in the air, claws bared, swinging down-_

* * *

Coco bolted upright and gasped loudly. Thousand of thoughts were racing through her mind, her heart throbbing so fiercely it felt like it was on the verge of bursting through her ribcage. Despite her deep and rapid breathing, it felt like her lungs were only getting barely enough oxygen to sustain her. With wide open eyes, she looked around her surroundings, searching the darkness that surrounded her, and realized she was in the same place where she had fallen asleep; the safe dorm room of team CFVY. She neither heard nor a saw single response, from her sleeping team members except for Yatsuhashi who was snoring quietly.

She already knew exactly what time it was, she always knew. There was no need to check her Scroll for confirmation. It was 2:17 am. It couldn't be any other time, not with this nightmare. It had been the time she had woken from this nightmare for a few weeks now..

She closed her eyes, gritting her teeth, steeling her thoughts, forcing herself to breathe in a slow and controlled manner. Her efforts paid off, with some difficulty. Soon, her tense body grew more relaxed, her throbbing heart returning to a more normal pace. Yet, her mind still raced with the harsh thoughts of the… beast.

Coco grumbled to herself while she reached for the nightstand for support as she pulled herself out of bed and onto her bare feet. She felt disgusted by the cold and slick sweat that covered her pale skin.

 _What am I going to do now at this time?_

She stripped out of her damp nightwear, put on her leather pants and cocoa coloured shirt, the bare minimum of her normal outfit. Her characteristic beret was left off. Despite the dark setting within the room, she decided to put on her sunglasses. They were her crutch, her sturdy wall, something she could hide her eyes behind. She slipped her leather boots on before reaching under her pillow to pocket a pair of items.

Through the dark lenses of her sunglasses, she saw her teammates, Velvet, Fox and Yatsuhashi, each of them sleeping soundly in their bed. Just moments ago, she had watched them die, killed by the beast. It had felt so real. Coco shuddered as she recalled Velvet's agonized screamed as she got mauled to death, the gory sight of Fox's mangled corpse. Yatsuhashi had made a stand, but the giant had been like a small boy against the unstoppable beast.

Coco shook her head, temporary ridding herself of those nightmarish memories out of her head. Her teammates were safe, and that was the only comfort she really needed. Little did they know what terrors affected the fashionista at night. And if she had her way, they would never find out.

With the utmost care, Coco made her way out of the dorm, not wanting to wake her team, or any other students for that matter. Furthermore, she didn't want to run into any night guards that had been in place recently, combined with the occasional appearance of Ironwood that she had seen a few times. None of them would exactly be pleased to see a student breaking curfew. It was a habit she had picked up from her father, to break a few rules here and there and flout the rules a little bit. She called her father The Turtle, due to his body and his rather defensive nature, something that had led to many an argument between daughter and father.

First though, was getting to _the spot_. Once she was out of the dorm room, Coco made her way down the hallways, down the stairs, walking rather slowly. There was no need to hurry. She was certain that nobody was out tonight, the thought crossing her mind a couple of times.

Coco found herself almost giving herself away from her own lax attitude, nearly walking right out into the main hall simply because she hadn't registered the sound of boots walking away from her. It was a steady noise, almost musically in keeping a beat. Coco immediately realized who it was; General Ironwood. There had been a couple of times when she had been heading out to the front of Beacon Academy that she had seen him standing out there through a window. Why he did so, Coco had no idea, but it wasn't her issue.

So far though, her issue had been made rather simple. If Ironwood had already been out, then there was a solid chance that entrance was still unlocked. The General, for any good things he might actually have, was quite bad at keeping things locked. Coco waited, listening to the boots march away slowly but surely. _Wait for it.. Go._ She took several slow steps out into the main hall, eyes peeled, looking for anyone at all that might be around. Empty, soulless and dark, made worse with the sunglasses on, but she could easily slip towards the door, give a test push and slip on out upon the reveal that it was open.

From there, it was a simple walk towards the edge of Beacon Academy, where she was greeted by the familiar, yet wonderful view. Looking out across the water towards the city of Vale, she took in the breathtaking sight of the city lights reflecting on the still water together with the stars and the moon. Something else helped calm her down as well.

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small and thin tin box, its smooth surface having identifying marks or engravings on it. Opening the lid, she slid out a cylindrical object, white paper and a brown filter. The family's smoking habit had been passed down to her with ease alright, as Coco pulled out her lighter. Unlike the cigarette case, the lighter had been marked, having an engraving of her crosshair emblem. It had been a gift from her uncle, a good luck charm and she had kept it safe, taking it with her on missions.

Lighting the cigarette, the fashionista sighed as she took a drag from it, her mind slipping into the concerns that were plaguing her. Concerns that she wasn't a good leader, a skilled huntress or caring friend, haunted her mind. Her greatest fear was that she might one day be responsible for the death of her friends and teammates, like she nearly had been before the school dance had occurred. The academy event they were supposed to organize, but because of Coco's own mistake, the mission had been extended for a week. It had been desperate, fighting off Grimm and trying to move to find some civilization once more..

She slowly exhaled the smoke, staring through her sunglasses past the smoke towards the city of Vale, a slight frown on her face. She was surprised at how quickly the city had returned to normal after incident known as _The Breach_ , where hundreds of Grimm had emerged from a tunnel and attacked the citizens. Thankfully, the attack had quickly been neutralized thanks to a timely intervention from hunters, including her own team, as well as Ironwood's robot soldiers.

Coco was lost in her thoughts, her mind switching topics faster than a race car switched gears. It wasn't until she heard the woman's angry voice behind her that she realized she was not alone. "Miss Adel. Up late again I see."

 _FUCK!_

Coco's outward appearance was more quiet and relaxed than her internal reaction. If Coco didn't turn around, maybe, just maybe, Glynda Goodwitch would leave. A few seconds passed as silence ate away at the girl's nerve.

"Smoking, again. Your constant breaking of the rules has not gone unnoticed, Miss Adel." Glynda's scolding was met with further silence from the smoking teenager.

Coco broke her silence, an exasperated sigh escaping from her lips, trying to think of what exactly she was going to say. some smart quip she could used to remain defensive about herself. "How long are you gonna stick me in detention this time? At least it's not for the refusal of wearing the school uniform again, huh?" Coco's calm, yet defensive tone gave away her mood, which drew out a exasperated sigh from Goodwitch.

"No, Miss Adel. I am not only here to give you detention for breaking curfew and smoking on campus. I've noticed that since returning from your mission from before the Breach, you have been out here every night. You have not done this since your first month of arriving to the academy." There was something that struck Coco in there, with no pause to consider anything she made her response so sharp.

"So extend the detention." Coco's short reply was defensive, almost trying to stop the conversation there and then, to just accept the punishment and be left alone. She didn't want to be chewed out, not tonight. The only company she wanted was her cigarette and her thoughts.

Goodwitch sighed, glancing back across the water towards Vale, pausing before the teacher would make start speaking. "Coco," she said with apparent concern in usually strict voice.

The change of tone completely disarmed Coco's attitude, her head turning towards the older woman like there had been a surprise, a shock. She didn't say a word at first. It was a while before she broke finally and sighed, "Miss Goodwitch,I'm not in the mood for this."

"No, neither am I, Coco," Glynda said, referring to the student by her first name, which was unusual for the formal teacher. "I'm still piecing together what happened but I suppose we should talk about something first. Your sunglasses." Glynda spoke calmly, her eyes peeled to the sunglasses. Coco felt uncomfortable, like a daughter expecting to be yelled at by her mother for a stupid life choice.

"What about them? They're mine and great," Coco muttered quietly. She was still trying to be defensive but there was no point as Glynda turned, to peer over her own glasses at the student, to get a real feel for what exactly was wrong. Coco shifted on the spot, taking a step back.

Goodwitch's mouth curled into a little frown before she responded, "I have never seen your eyes, Coco. In fact, from what I have heard, you have rarely shown your eyes to your friends and teammates." Glynda sounded so calm about this all and Coco's body language was just sinking, defeated. She knew what words were coming next and she wasn't capable of making anything to deny it. "You hide behind them, Coco. I suppose this leads into the next statement I have to make quite nicely. You hide your emotions because I suppose that's your coping mechanism. To hide in plain sight."

There was nothing but a quiet noise from Coco. The cool, calm fashionista was being rendered a sweating bundle of nerves. She was uncharacteristically quiet, no quip on her lips, but Goodwitch didn't wait for Coco to make a response to the matter, cutting right in.

"The mission you and your team embarked on before the dance, it took some reading before I realized exactly what happened. You were sent to retrieve some must needed goods for villages from a very dangerous area that had very recently been overrun by Grimm.. Your team were very strong , but on the way to get out, you made a decision that whilst was the correct one, left you stranded there. Even for an official team of hunters, an extra week in the field can be... draining. For students, whilst strong, I was not surprised to realize how wounded you and your team were." Glynda's voice still had the concerned tone, but to Coco it might have well been an accusing tone.

Coco finally snapped back a remark, breaking her passiveness, "I know the injuries, Goodwitch. Fox had a few broken bones, Yats had been pierced through the stomach, Vel and I suffered some cuts here and there. We could have been a lot worse off. I'm very aware that my choice to put the mission before my team got us hurt." Coco huffed, dropping the cigarette onto the ground and stomping it out firmly, almost aggressively. She stared through her sunglasses at Glynda, who simply continued to look at Coco Adel.

"You went through a crucible, Miss Adel. You placed your trust that you and your team would succeed and live. No food or water. You had to make your way to civilization through heavy Grimm infestations." Glynda's voice changed, almost something to pride with the hint of concern still. "But nobody comes out of facing death without.. problems, Coco." Concern flooded right back in, betraying that there was a real concern that Goodwitch actually had.

"Nightmares, vividly. I've not slept properly since coming back. I was hiding it well, I thought. You and Ironwood were always.. out and about, but you two never confronted me. I don't want people to know that I'm suffering." Coco admitted, glancing to the ground like it was something to be ashamed off. After all, it was in the head of Coco. Being a Huntress meant you had to be strong and to Coco, that just meant that she couldn't show weakness. The sunglasses helped hide herself, she could ooze confidence without having to look anyone in the eyes. "But I don't need help. A Huntress is strong. She shouldn't need some help facing death."

Glynda took a moment to look back towards the city, before shifting her heels around back to Beacon. "Coco, there is nothing wrong with having people help you, nor is there any signs of weakness that you haven't dealt with facing death eye to eye. Everyone who ends up as a hunter will deal with it one day. You are not weak." Goodwitch continued to speak, taking steps now, slow, around to the other side of her student. "You'll have these nightmares for a while, but you'll remember that they can't touch you or harm you. You beat them once, in the week of your crucible. You survived. You became stronger. Now, let your team help you. Let me help you." Glynda offered her hand with a honest look on her face.

Coco felt unsure about what Glynda had just told her. but her body language was a little bit more.. relaxed about it, about the situation. "I appreciate the offer but…," Coco paused for a while, trying to search for the words for her argument. "Every one of you Huntresses I've seen you're all so… calm. Someone strong like you, Goodwitch, you do everything alone. I know teams are important, I know, but I don't want them to support me, I want to support them. I'm their leader, I carry the burdens they don't need to." There was a hint of uncertainty in her voice though about her own statement, which the older woman quite easily picked up on.

"I am not always alone. I have Professor Ozpin and General Ironwood. I have had many people and students over the years who have helped me, Miss Adel. Your continuing attempts to be alone aren't what makes you strong. Your continuing support for the people around you is. Despite the nightmares and the weight of all the problems on your shoulders, you seem to put everyone else first. Miss Scarlatina and Mr Alistair have testified that to me many times recently." She pushed her glasses up her face, the older woman wore just the smallest smile on her face now as she looked over the student.

The student was a little more on edge at this revelation. How long had the preparation gone into this confrontation? "I... I know, I know but there's just... I don't know." Coco's hand moved, but not towards Glynda's own. Instead, it was moving towards the sunglasses that rested her nose, slowly pulling them off. "But.. You're right, really. I'm sure that you don't need to know that." Coco's brown eyes blinked a couple of times as she looked up at Goodwitch, but she never looked the older woman in the eyes. Instead though, her right hand took Glynda's hand.

"Miss Adel, you have a lot of people that care for you, that will help you when needed, myself included. Come to my office, I have something to show you. And Miss Adel?" Glynda's face became suddenly quite serious for the moment. "Detention, once a week, for two months."

Coco just rolled her eyes and sighed. "Fiiine.." She suddenly realized how quiet her words were coming out now. She wasn't trying to put an air of confidence, as she walked with Glynda. It wasn't the actor, the leader of CFVY. It was the person, Coco Adel.


	2. 8:04 am

" _Velvet!" Coco screeched with such anger in her voice, eyebrows narrowed. Her team leader was covered from head to toe in whipped cream thanks to the explosion of the frosted cake. The female, bunny Faunus couldn't help herself as she burst out into a hearty laughter, her brown eyes glistening with mirthy tears. Oh, how incredibly fun it was to watch her stern leader pout and stamp her leather boot, the beginning of a Coco Adel trantum. Coco folded her arms and and pouted, followed by a huff._

" _Cream ala Coco!" exclaimed Velvet loudly with the smallest of giggles, like she was futilely trying to suppress it. This just drew a frustrated sigh and another stamp of Coco's foot. Velvet was so pleased that she reached to her right to scoop out chocolate syrup with a giant oversized saucer, flinging the liquid right at her team leader._

 _It stuck true, much to Velvet's delight as she saw the sticky and sugary mixture of white and brown on her team leader's clothes, hair and face. "Gotcha!" she teased, bouncing from foot to foot. Coco stared at her, before the fashionista dragged a hand along her front, her mouth opening and there was a strangled noise coming out of the open mouth as black claws grasped from within the mouth of Coco those lips and dark smoke began to claw it's way out of Coco, slowly but surely, flooding Coco in this veil of smoke as she almost vomited it up._

 _The veil quickly grew in size, overwhelming the entire room, seemingly absorbing the walls, ceiling and furniture. It was like Velvet stood before a bottomless, expanding chasm, so dark that no light could land on it. The darkness' growth and spread accelerated and loomed over Velvet, threatening to envelop her. She tried to scream, to run, but she felt paralyzed, like a deer caught in the headlight. A glowing pair of monstrous, red eyes amidst the darkness glared at her._

 _The Beast soared-_

* * *

 __  
The streaks of sunlight pierced the window of CFVY's dorm, heralding the beginning of a new day. The light fell upon Velvet's face as she lay in bed, awakening her from a deep slumber. Groaning softly, she shielded her face with a hand while letting her eyes grow accustomed to the bright illumination. She mumbled quietly to herself before rolling over to the other side to face her bedside clock on top of the nightstand. There was something else, or rather, someone else standing next to the furniture.

"COCO?!" The Faunus squirmed right back away from the side of the bed, looking up at the looming team leader, who was just staring without saying anything. The Fashionista was standing upright over her teammate, but her posture looked unsteady, swaying slightly. If Velvet had to guess, her leader was tired and worn out from not sleeping, again. Those sunglasses hid a lot from Velvet, but she knew from just how much time she had spent around Coco the moods she was in. Exhausted from being tired and worn out from something else, but Velvet couldn't place it. While the silence between the two girls, Velvet became aware of a subtle movement from behind her. Turning her head slowly, she assumed it was either Fox or Yatsuhashi, but they weren't in the room, their beds empty and it looked like that they had only freshly been vacated. So who was in the room with her and Coco?

"Miss Scarlatina." Goodwitch loomed over the bunny faunus and there was the smallest squeaks as she sunk into the bed. This was not what the student was expecting to see in the morning. The scariest person a student could ever see, especially standing right over her. "Please, whilst there is no rush for team CFVY today as you are excused from classes today, I feel it is important to... have a discussion. The classroom closest to here shall do, yes?" With that, Goodwitch turned and began walking towards the exit of the room.

Coco remained standing over her teammate whilst both of the girls waited to hear the door shut before they dared to speak. "I'm sorry, Velvet, for giving you a jump. I didn't want to wake you and Gly.. Goodwitch was not in the mood to rush us," she murmured quietly, her body relaxing a little bit and the sway became a little more apparent to Velvet.

"Well, you've been up all night, Co," the Faunus replied, finally rolling out of bed and heading towards the cupboard where she kept her clothes. She dress in her nightwear as she took a moment to consider something before turning to face her team leader, a look of worry upon her teenage visage. "She... found you last night and told you that-"

"Yeah," Coco gently interrupted her, "Knew where I went, what time to find me. She talked to me. Helped me through the night..." Coco's tired voice trailed off. Velvet turned back and began to select her clothes for the day. "Be warned, Vel. I know we all had it hard on those few weeks. She's going to ask. She's going to prod and pry at us. Suppose that's something they don't teach at this school. When you've accepted death and live, what do you do after?" Coco mused, staring at Velvet before turning to the door. "Well anyways,see you there, Vel." The door shut behind her with a thud.

* * *

A short moment later, after Velvet had gotten dressed in her school uniform, she stepped out of the dorm and made her way down the halls. She did as she had been told, and entered the classroom nearest to her, quietly slipping in and closing the door behind her. Her brown eyes were drawn to the teacher's desk, where Miss Goodwitch was sat behind it with. Her characteristic crop lied across the table, within arm's reach. Four chairs stood in front of the desk, with two of them occupied. One by the large frame of Yatsuhashi, who sat leaned back onto his chair. Fox next to him, on the very edge, hands on his lap, stiff as a brick. Both in their full school uniform, both in pure contrast with their leader. Fox remained still but Yatsuhashi turned in his chair, to give his teammate a relaxed smile.

Coco stood a distance away,perched on one of the student desks, dressed in a brown jacket with gold trim and her usual leather pants. Velvet knew so little about fashion but the jacket had to be expensive, hundreds or so Lien at least. She couldn't concern herself with the price of clothes. Right now she she needed to focus on the matter that had drawn team CFVY into a classroom with Glynda Goodwitch.

Thus, Velvet moved quickly and quietly to take a seat next to Fox, her face expressing silent concern for her teammates. Now she could see the calmness of the peaceful giant, Yatsuhashi, and it was soothing and inspiring for her to see it. Fox appeared stoic, but his hands were shifting slightly on his lap, betraying the nervousness his dark face and white eyes wouldn't show. Squeezing his tense shoulder softly with her delicate hand, Velvet smiled and tried to calm him. Fox's head turned a little to face her with a slight smile of thanks to her.

The almost eerie silence within the room was broken as Glynda cleared her throat and began to speak, "Mr Daichi, Mr Alistair, Miss Scarlatina and Miss Adel. The four of you have been students at this academy for over a year now. During the same year, you have had various talks with me. Praise for _most_ of you being some of the hardest working students this academy has seen. Concern raised by Mr Alistair and Miss Scarlatina over some issues you have faced. Discipline involving Miss Adel's constant uniform protests as well as some... _violence_ against a Mr Winchester. Yes, I shall be having words about Miss Adel's inability to attend an important meeting with me in the proper attire that is befitting of this academy." Velvet couldn't stop herself, and let out a short, barely audible giggle. She squirmed and shrunk down into her chair a little as Glynda stared disapprovingly at her.

The older woman tapped her desk for a few moments, letting the moment pass before continuing. "You have all come from difficult places and upbringings. Scarlatina and her heritage, Alistair and his life in a town outside the walls. Daichi and adapting to life outside of his upbringing. Adel and the business with the Adel Shipping Company along with her family. Together, you have helped each other through hard times but there's a situation you all went through that none of you seem to know what to do next. We're here to talk it through, together, so we can get you all started on handling on the issues."

Velvet sensed the mood in the air change, as the four students tensed up. It had been nervous and uncomfortable but now there was tension in the air, something that made the silence very uncomfortable to handle with. "Miss Goodwitch, I uh..." Velvet started but she couldn't finish. The words escaped her but Fox spoke up next to her.

"You're talking about _the_ mission."Fox stated with a calm voice. It was a simple statement, but suddenly Velvet knew what was going to be discussed and it frankly made her uncomfortable. Fox continued. "The mission and how... we're trying to cope with the realisation that we are not a unbeatable team and how to... try and handle facing death." Fox murmured the addition, but everyone could hear it so clearly.

Velvet's gaze flicked between Goodwitch, Coco, Fox and Yatsuhashi, trying to understand their moods. Everyone but Coco was easy to understand, thanks to the leader's sunglasses, Velvet could tell was a bit nervous and worried about the upcoming conversation with a careful look. Goodwitch's fingers were tapping against the desk, Fox's hands were still shifting and Yatsuhashi closed his eyes and lowered his head. Coco hadn't moved, hadn't spoken yet and it seemed like she was just waiting for something. Her arms were folded, her mouth was still and she just remained still but stiff on the desk.

"Yatsuhashi, would you like to start by describing the mission from your perspective?" Glynda asked and the giant did just that, speaking with his soft tones, but Velvet noticed that it was very official. He spoke of the retrieval mission to get important data, although they didn't know what it was. How simple it was to get in and how hard it was to get out. The Grimm had come in bigger numbers and they were heading to an evac point, fighting all the while to try and figure out why the Grimm had swarmed so hard.

"We figured out after a while that they were moving towards the bridge and towards one of the bigger frontier towns." Yatsuhashi finished his statement with a glance towards his team leader. "I think Coco should tell you about it-"

Goodwitch raised her hand in a preemptive manner, silencing him, a slight smile on her face. "Thank you, Mr Daichi. I presume if I asked Mr Alistair or Miss Scarlatina about the start of the mission, it would be note for note the same. Miss Adel has told me about the Bridge. But this is where I need to ask you a simple question, all of you." She glanced towards Velvet, starting with the girl who was rather clearly nervous. Velvet's mind was racing, and she felt how dry and stiff her lips had become. She was more nervous than she had been before, even if the conversation had been going this direction. Now, without the asking of the question that Glynda was surely going to ask, the answer came first.

"You're going to ask about the bridge," Velvet spoke timidly. She knew where this was going, and she took a moment to think it over before opening her mouth to speak. "You're going to ask if Coco blowing up the bridge to slow the Grimm down despite the fact it could and did leave us stranded and in serious danger was the right call." She spoke clearly but her voice was betraying her nerves, how each word almost sounded like it was shaking from wind.

There was a twitch of Goodwitch's mouth before she spoke. "Yes. But it's a simple matter of fact we need to confirm on the matter. The destruction of the old bridge that hadn't been used by the closest town in a long time but would have the chance that the airship you needed to have to bail and possibly damaged. Was there a debate?" Goodwitch asked, turning her head to the three of them.

"No." Yatsuhashi was quick and honest to state that, whilst Fox nodded his head slowly in agreement. The eyes moved back to Velvet and the young girl was yet again nervous and she added more than a simple no.

"Coco tried to convince us," said Velvet. "She thought we would have to think about it, about the fact we might be put in danger. We all said that it didn't matter, it was... good. Besides, we could handle ourselves. We thought so, at least. There was... just so many of them." She fell quiet and looked at her feet, feeling an arm from Fox around her, just offer as some comfort.

"Then what happened was simple. You four fought all the way to the nearest high point, upon a mountain, knowing that you would be receiving extraction at some point but you would have to survive until then." Glynda turned her gaze away from Velvet, and focused instead upon the male half of the team. "Fox and Yatsuhashi, you both were unconscious and badly wounded at points. Do you remember much about what happened?" She looked at them curiously, tilting her head.

Fox spoke first, taking a moment to consider his words. "We were setting up a base within a cave, starting a signal fire on the peak of the mountain and we came under attack by a flock of Nevermores. If Yatsuhashi and Velvet hadn't been there, I would have been dead." He was quite calm despite the subject matter and it seemed like to Velvet, who could pick up on the little things about her teammates, that this talk was doing good. It wouldn't fix it all, but it would be a step along the way.

"The Nevermores got me too. Through the stomach. Nothing that could be done except drag Fox back and start plucking those feathers out." Like how he spoke, Yatsuhashi kept it short and simple. The teacher's gaze returned to Velvet.

"I tended to their wounds and... Coco went to the entrance of the Cave and stood there for a moment. Then she went to Fox and took his weapons. She had run out of ammo long ago and took a few seconds before saying to me, ' _If I don't come back. Take care of them for me. They're my family, you're my family and I... love you all.'"_ Velvet felt her eyes tearing up. She glanced towards Coco who finally was moving towards Velvet, ready to pull her friend into a hug, and Goodwitch leaned back.

"Velvet, Fox, Yatsuhashi. I would like to thank you all for coming to talk to me and bringing up your concerns privately, as well as involving yourself in this conversation. Beacon is... looking at a way for trying to help students out with this more. Most likely, we'll be using third and fourth years on this matter." Glynda nodded her head. "But as a team, you can communicate. I know you're all on the right path now, just talk to each other. Now, if you would please leave me and Miss Adel, I must talk to her about what was discussed here as well as discipline her for the uniform matter." She calmly said, her hand moving to the crop as the three students stood up slowly.

They were quick to head to their dorm room, to begin discussing with each other the day their life changed. Velvet's thoughts were of her leader though. She knew that the talk had done Fox and Yatsuhashi the world of good, but had her leader got what she wanted from it?

* * *

 _Also I forgot to do this last week, but thank you to my proofreader Blood Shinobi for seriously helping me out! Thank you for those who have left reviews and thank you to those who asked I continue! Thanks to my friends for being super chill and awesome with their responses too._

 _And thanks to RWBY Creators for making a good show to watch._


	3. 7:15 am

It had been four days since Coco Adel and Yatsuhashi Daichi had been defeated by Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai and for the first night. Coco Adel was lying in her own bed.

The rest of team CFVY couldn't sleep as the flow of time ticked on through the night. It had been an hour since Coco had begun writhing, moaning and screaming in her sleep. They knew of her recurring nightmares, of the waking up at 2:17 AM. Today, however, she was having her first real sleep without the aid of sleeping pills in a long time, and the screaming had instead started at 2:17 AM. The time that usually meant Coco awoke from her sleep to sneak out, as the team all knew she usually did, but today there was nothing but screams.

Velvet was the one to note to the rest of her team that it seemed like the fashionista was fighting something, the way her body was trying to fight clumsly in her sleep was how Velvet had guessed. Fighting what, none of them knew exactly. Since the Vytal tournament, since the utter trouncing from the strange pair of students of Haven, Coco hadn't been herself. Everyone had seen how hard she'd taken it. Barging past people, not responding to her teammates, growling and staring at people who mentioned the tournament before looking depressed.

There had been no more private time with Miss Goodwitch either, all three had quite obviously noticed. Since the tournament got underway, Goodwitch had been hard to find and talk to for anyone. Fox, Velvet and Yatsuhashi didn't think it would have been important but even Yatsuhashi, the calm giant, had been knocked down a peg from the fight. He had admitted it himself, but nobody had seen what Coco had been on about, talking about illusions. Maybe that was what was causing her nightmares.

Of course, the only person who knew what was going on was trapped inside of her own head.

* * *

 ****

 **The Amity Colosseum was empty, the fashionista noticed. She was standing right in the middle of the most expensive fighting arena imaginable, a monument symbolizing the peace between the four Kingdoms and it was empty. It was 2:17 pm, a fight day, and Coco Adel found herself alone. Just... alone. No noises, no persons, no signs that the scheduled fight was about to take place. "What's going on here Hello?" shouted Coco frustratedly. The only response she received was her own echo, followed by silence. She grunted. If her opponent had forfeited, then why had she bothered getting out of bed?**

 **The eerie silence was suddenly broken by a loud beep coming from every speaker within the coloseum. The large, digital screen was turned on. There was her name, full Aura bar, no other name below hers. The opposing team consisted of two names that made her clench her firsts, feeling her face turn cold. No, no, she knew those names. They had caused her so much pain, humiliation.**

 **Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black. She took a half step back from the screen, staring at the screen in disbelief. She spun around as she heard someone clearing their throat behind her.**

 **The green-haired, dark-skinned ninja and the silvery gray-haired kicker stood there, looking smug as always. but they weren't as she remembered them. Their shadows loomed across the battlefield, but there was something wrong about it, too long and Coco could swear that they were... writhing, like worms on the ground. As Coco's eyes followed the shadows up, she could see them clawing up the bodies, clawing up their legs, starting to consume them, but their eyes were glowing red, so bright and that she recognized those eyes. The Beast that had been chasing her for so long.**

 **Emerald and Mercury smirked, the former giving a wave before she spoke. "Hey there, nobody here to watch you except the Crow? Guess you gotta fight this one on your own, huh?"**

 **"This isn't fair!" Coco protested, one gloved hand being held up, the other more than ready to turn her handbag into its minigun form. Her attention went to the dark cloud surrounding the front row behind Mercury and Emerald. She saw two skeletal hands emerged slowly from the cloud and perched on the ledge.**

 **There was silence between the three of them before Emerald and Mercury began laughing so loud that it made Coco flinch. The arena environment randomzier began to spin, and stopped at a green tree symbol. The arena floor changed, multiple, thick tree trunks materializing out of nowhere, turning the area into a forest. It was not the same type of forest she had seen before. No, the trees were decaying husks, their brittle branches barely holding onto the few withering leaves. The tree hunks bore deep and black claw marks, with red eyes staring at Coco without blinking.**

 **"Like it? After all, we are not exactly what you fear." Mercury said with a shrug of his shoulders. "We're just the recent embarrassments in your head. So come on, try something." With that, Mercury stuck his arm out and pointed mockingly at Coco. His cocky grin alone made Coco unfold her minigun so naturally and spin the barrels up.**

 **The first hail of bullets soared straight and true, and they shredded through the skin of her foes. That should've been it. To Coco's surprise, Mercury and Emerald remained standing and unfazed, the smugness on their faces only swelling. Instead of red blood, the multiple bullet holes in their bodies leaked what looked like black ooze. Their wounds began to close up and fade away until it looked like they had never been hurt in the first place.**

 **"Heh. Good try, why don't you give it another go, huh?" Mercury said with a twisted little smirk upon his face.**

 **Coco squeezed the trigger again, but was met with silence. She looked down on her weapon. The barrels spun rapidly, but no bullets left them. She then heard a metallic, rattling sound that quickly came closer toward. Coco looked up and reacted too late as Emerald's chain wrapped itself tightly around her. Even with her clothes on, the chain felt so ice cold as if it was touching her bare skin. With a powerful tug, Emerald pulled Coco off balance and forward, straight toward the awaiting Mercury. The male spun around, and delivered a roundhouse kick straight into Coco's face, sending her flying backward. She slid across the floor, rolling several times until she came to a stop near the edge of the fight area.**

 **The first thing she saw as she regained her focus were the broken, black fragments of her sunglasses lying next to her head. "I liked those," she murmured to herself and tossed away the bent sunglasses frame that still rested on her nose.**

 **As soon as she got up, Coco let out a sharp gasp as a hand as big as her head slammed down on top of the broken glass and dragged it into the shadows, leaving behind these disgusting crawling worms along the marks. Coco hated worms, hated them so much.**

 **"No hiding, Coco Adel." The feminine voice that came from the shadows sounded familiar. She believed she knew whose it was, and received confirmation as Glynda Goodwitch's face materialized within the darkness. She looked… strange. Her bloodstained face looked as rigid and lifeless like a painting, angrily glaring at the student with non-blinking eyes. "There comes a time, Coco…," She spoke, but her mouth did not move, "Where you have to deal with this on your own. Ju-" The teacher's voice was cut off by the smash of the boot next to her face by Mercury, causing the ground to just crack beneath his foot and between the cracks, she could swear there was a crow's eye staring at her.**

 **"Going nowhere. I got you for three minutes." Mercury grinned and brought his heel down in a crescent shaped axe kick once more, narrowly missing the dodging form of Coco who slipped right between the legs and scrambled quickly to her feet slowly. ready to block the next kick. As she felt Emerald's chain around her a second time, Coco knew she was going to have a bad time.**

 **It was such a well oiled machine, the two fighters moving and acting as one. First came the rapid series of slashes from Emerald's sicles. The flurry was finished with a extra strong blow that sent Coco staggering towards Mercury, who kicked the fashionista up into the air. Coco wasn't allowed any respite in mid-air, as the chain around her was tugged down, sending her crashing into the floor.**

 **The next Coco really knew, she was on the edge of the arena once more. Blood flowed freely from multiple, small lacerations on her face, dripping down onto her expensive clothes. "Coco! Breathe! Come on!" Another female's voice was heard, but it was not Glynda's. It sounded younger. As Coco turned her face, she gasped in shock as she was greeted by the nightmarish vision of Velvet's decayed face. She looked so much more real than Glynda before. Coco had pictured it so many times and now she was seeing it, how close it was. She wanted to touch the face, but there was just a feeling in the back of her mind that it would be bad to do so.**

 **"Come on Coco! Fight it! Don't you remember what Goodwitch said?" It was a teenage male's voice, but this time there was no complete face to go with it. Just Fox's pale eyes hanging there in the darkness of the shadows that were starting to swarm closer and closer to the edge of the platform. The tendrils of darkness turned into claws, dragging their way along the ground.**

 **A pair of items were flung out from the darkness, landing and sliding across the floor. As they came still, Coco recognized them as Fox's weapons. She knew what she needed to do, to fight her foes the way she had fought death away before.**

 **She heard Goodwitch's voice again, "I've been trying to teach you something, Miss Adel. How to cope. Your team-mates aren't just the people you care for. They care for you. You help each other through difficult moments. Communication helps." It had been words that had hung around her since the talk with the rest of her team, something that had been lingering on her mind for so long. She'd been burdening herself with her teammates problems as well as her own and not**

 **Mercury and Emerald were stalking towards her, almost nightmarishly slow, these dark twisted grins. From their mouths, the darkness flooded out, clawing down their bodies, ready to devour Coco. Their red, glowing eyes gazed hungrily at her, like a starving predator eager to feast upon a helpless and meaty prey. They were so slow, the creeping inevitability of life but they halted at one word that came out of Coco's mouth. "Help!"**

 **Three pairs of legs appeared just in front of her, standing proud, strong and firm. Fox, Velvet and Yatsuhashi formed a semicircle around her, their weapons drawn. A moment of silence passed as Emerald and Mercury looked at each other, and then back at Team CFVY. They looked a little agitated about the the appearance of the three hunters.**

 **They dove forward, aiming their kicks and blades toward Coco. Her teammates acted quickly, first the giant of the man called Yatsuhashi, swinging his blade and it blocked the blades of Emerald and the boots of Mercury, allowing the two other CFVY members to involve themselves in the defense of Coco Adel. Fox stepped forwards, a quick one two before using his stride to launch a good firm blow into the midsection of Emerald, sending her backwards, skidding into the center of the arena.**

 **For Mercury, he made the discovery the fun fact about Velvet Scarlatina. Her foot came up and struck Mercury true, and could the Rabbit Faunus kick hard. The teenage assassin was kicked backward, soaring through the air like an arrow towards its scoring board until he smashed against a rotten tree hunk, shattering it upon impact. Victory seemed to be at hand. Suddenly, there was a scream from something that was not human. It came from from the silver-haired boy. Coco could, to her horror, clearly see how his skin writhed as the crawling darkness within started to burst out, piercing through his skin. The guy's meat was peeled away from the inside as The Beast within consumed him. Mercury's body was turned into a black, twitching pile of ooze that began to quickly crawl, heading towards Emerald.**

 **Emerald Sustrai, began screaming, her body going through the same, disturbing transformation as Mercury. she too turned into a black puddle that raced towards Mercury. They met up in the middle and combined. Quickly, the two puddles combined and began to swell in size. A large, muscular and furry body began to take shape. Powerful limbs, white spikes and a bear's head sprouted out from it.**

 **It was an Ursa, a big one but it seemed like it was wounded, as the blood seeped from multiple wounds across. Its glowing eyes were flickering, its skin still writhing as it tried to recover, but The Beast's spell for this dream was broken. It had no power over the girl anymore and it knew that. There was the pause before Yatsuhashi stepped closer to the Fashionista, extending the large sword towards her.**

 **Coco' took the large blade, but the girl, despite her strength, couldn't manage to lift the blad. Instead, she was dragging it, slowly but surely towards The Beast. She was smiling to herself as the leader of CFVY approached her worst nightmare, who raised its head, glaring at her. "I figured it all out." Coco sounded calm, collected. Tonight was important to her. Tonight was the night she got the mission out of her system. The night 2:17 am wasn't a number she feared.**

 **The blade swung up through the head of the Ursa. iIt fell, struck the ground with a large screech and the fashionista fell to her knees. She stared at the darkness crumbling and with a long pause, she jolted out of the dream.  
**

* * *

"Miss Adel, wake up." The voice rung through Coco's head but she didn't wake up straight away. She was feeling how sweaty her body and sheets were, how her sweat had drenched her night clothes so they stuck to the skin. The nightmare had gripped her so tight, Coco realized but she was awake now. She'd fought her everlasting worry and she had finally realized what was needed to do so. One of those dark brown eyes slid open, then the other.

"It's rude to be looming over someone," stated Coco tired while in bed, gazing at the blonde-haired teacher in front of her. The fashionista rubbed her face, trying to wake her fuzzy mind up before would probably get into a verbal battle with Glynda. "I take it I worried my team last night?" She looked around the room, but did not see her teammates.

"I sent them away. Judging from the screams, I suppose you had a nightmare, Miss Adel. Which is why I was informed that someone was being murdered in here last night." Glynda calmly stated with a little gesture to the wall closest to Coco's bed, on the right hand side and the young girl realized that if she had been screaming, the team next to her had been victims of her screaming. "Never mind, I suppose. Your first night back from the medical staff and you have a nightmare, of which it seemed you were fighting something."

Coco nodded her head, shifting in her bed a little, looking up at the ceiling. Glynda, with no other prompt, continued."You must've been exhausted. Tossing, turning. But-"

Coco raised her hand in a preemptive gesture to silently interrupt the woman. A wide and warm smile spread across her face. "Thank you, Glynda. I understand now what you've been trying to tell me the past few days. I suppose I needed a joint ass whooping with one of my teammates to get it. Burdens are meant to be shared, especially as hunters. Even as a leader... I need to share. I need others to help me through difficult moments." Coco spoke rather passionately about it, smiling slightly towards Glynda before rising out of her bed, stepping out in her drenched night clothes, consisting of a black exquisite nightgown, still smiling. Glynda averted her gaze respectfully, there was even a little redness to her cheeks. "People like you. Like Velvet, like Fox, like Yats. Like anyone I call my friend, we gotta share the burden."

Glynda's eyes met Coco's, a smile on her lips. "Yes. It is what teams are for. To help each other when all you do is help." She took a half step closer to the student, leaning down towards her slightly, but Coco moved, wrapping her arms around the older woman as firm as she could, entrapping her in a tight hug. The two women, for as personal as they had been together, had never shared this type of situation before. Glynda didn't quite know what to do, her face caught in the look of surprise, before they wrapped right back around the younger girl, holding her close. After all, they both had learned lessons about Coco Adel..

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That's the end of the story. I plan to write more RWBY fanfics, especially about Coco. Feel free to add me to your follow list if you want to be alerted when I put them up.


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